Place A Jar Of These Natural Rocks In Your Garage And Watch What Happens

Garages often develop unpleasant odors. Leaks can lead to trapped moisture, creating an ideal breeding ground for mold and mildew growth, which results in a musty smell. Poor air circulation further contributes to this issue. Additionally, storing items like paint, cleaning materials, and vehicle fluids in garages can also contribute to persistent odors. Homeowners, aware of this recurring issue, are increasingly seeking affordable and eco-friendly solutions to combat garage smells. One such solution for getting rid of that funky smell in your garage is zeolite. You've probably seen zeolite in home improvement shops — yep, those rocks in mesh bags! These not only effectively capture odors but are also an attractive option for those preferring to avoid traditional odorants that merely mask smells and could potentially harm health.

Zeolites are natural volcanic minerals formed by the reaction of volcanic ash with underground alkaline lakes. These volcanic rocks find widespread use in industrial and environmental applications, particularly in purifying gas and water, because of their absorbent and adsorbent properties. This means they can absorb water and odor-causing liquids and adsorb (attract and hold) gas and liquid molecules — including odor-producing gases – on their surfaces, making them efficient in eliminating contaminants.

Why is zeolite effective at removing odors? First, its surface is negatively charged, which means it attracts molecules with positive charges and neutralizes them to remove their odors. Next, this mineral is porous; it's like a tiny sponge with microscopic honeycomb-like structures. This unique structure provides a big surface area relative to the rock's volume, increasing its efficiency at absorbing odor-causing liquids and attracting and neutralizing odor-causing gases from the surrounding environment.

Because of these properties, zeolites are adept at neutralizing odors like the foul smell from volatile sulfur-containing compounds in decomposing fruits and vegetables, as well as hydrogen sulfide and ammonia from organic sources such as rotting meat and sewage. Given that many people store their garbage bins in their garages and often contend with sewage smells in the garage as well, placing zeolite in this area can be an effective strategy for odor removal. As a bonus, zeolite is also effective in adsorbing toxic substances from cigarette smoke, which can be very helpful if your household contains people who go to the garage to smoke.

According to a 2021 study published in the journal Materials, treated or activated zeolite, particularly 1 to 3 mm rocks activated through thermal treatment, is the best type to use for the adsorption of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide and humidity control. Impressively, zeolite is also found to be 10 times more effective than baking soda in terms of controlling gross smells in your home. Unlike baking soda, zeolite can absorb heavier chemicals and react with a greater volume of particles, tackling more than just common household odors.

An added advantage of using zeolite over baking soda is its reusability. Although its surface can become saturated over time, releasing trapped odors back into the air, you can simply "recharge" it by placing it outdoors in the sun for about six hours. Don't worry because you don't have to do this frequently; recharging your zeolite rocks every six months should suffice and extend their effectiveness for up to two years.